Alleged victim of rape storms out of courtroom during testimony

MEDIA COURTHOUSE — A trial for three men facing abduction and rape charges that was delayed Wednesday was derailed again Thursday when the alleged victim stormed out of the courtroom.

The 17-year-old girl had provided an emotional account of her ordeal to the jury of 10 women and two men, at times crying so hard her answers to Assistant District Attorney Christopher Boggs’ questions were inaudible.

That sorrow turned to anger during cross-examination by Alex Giribaldi, representing defendant Eddie Johnson, 37, of the 2000 block of Bonaffon Street in Philadelphia.

The girl became increasingly confrontational toward the defense attorney, occasionally muttering under her breath, and eventually walked off the stand. Several veteran attorneys present said they had never seen a witness leave in the middle of testimony before.

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What followed was about an hour and a half of legal head scratching as the alleged victim was consoled by various people. Judge Gregory Mallon released the jurors for the night.

During her limited testimony, the girl said she had been hanging out at a friend’s house on the night of Sept. 28, 2012, but left around 11 p.m. to go to her father’s home. While walking on the 6600 block of Upland Street in West Philadelphia, the girl said she passed one of her alleged assailants on the street.

She said that same man, whom she identified in court as Johnson, soon got out of a car that pulled up in front of her at a corner. Johnson and another man, identified in court as defendant Alfred Kulah, 35, wrestled her into the car, according to the girl. She said she did not call out or fight with the men, but did try to pull away.

The girl said she was taken to an apartment on Long Lane in Upper Darby, where the driver, identified as defendant Mortimah Kesselly, 41, ushered the alleged assailants and her to an upstairs apartment.

Once inside, the girl said Kesselly undressed her and then had sex with her while the other men watched. When he was finished, she said Kulah and Johnson also raped her.

“They took turns,” she said.

The girl testified that Kesselly, represented by attorney Frank Zarrilli, also threatened to do the same thing to her mother.

Kulah and Johnson left that night, she said, but Kesselly remained. In the morning, she said Kesselly again raped her. Kulah, represented by Karen Friel, also raped her again when he returned later, according to the girl.

She said Kesselly then drove her to another house and led her through a back door into a basement, where he wanted her to shower. The girl said she was wearing shorts and a sweatshirt that her alleged assailants provided her — she had not seen her clothes since the night before.

The alleged victim said Kesselly spoke to people in the house in a foreign tongue. She explained these were Kesselly’s people and she feared that they would also rape her if she asked for help. She said she likewise did not attempt to flee the car for fear Kesselly would simply grab her again.

After returning to the apartment, the girl said Kesselly and Johnson each had unwanted sex with her again. The following morning, she said Kesselly turned the television to a soccer match, then left her alone in the apartment. The girl said she waited about five or 10 minutes before running outside and flagging down a passing motorist, who called her father. She was taken to the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia for treatment and police were notified.

The girl gave two statements to police: one typed up by a Philadelphia officer on Sept. 30 and a second statement she wrote out for Upper Darby police on Oct 1.

As Giribaldi began pointing to inconsistencies between those statements and testimony provided Thursday, the girl became increasingly frustrated, often yelling at the attorney.

Giribaldi claimed Johnson, his client, was working in King of Prussia at 11 p.m. on the night of the abduction, to which the girl replied, “It’s clear he’s lying because he was in my face, how about that?”

She also denied signing the Sept. 30 statement and insisted the attorney instead go by her Oct. 1 statement. Both statements indicated she had accompanied her alleged abductors to McDonald’s at one point, but the girl denied that happened Thursday.

It was at about that point that the alleged victim took off. This was the second day of the trial and the second delay. A scuffle had broken out Wednesday afternoon outside the courtroom, during which the alleged victim and her mother were cited for disorderly conduct and sent home.

The trial is expected to resume Friday.

About the Author

Alex Rose covers court proceedings for the Daily Times. He also writes a weekly science column. Reach the author at arose@delcotimes.com
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